Puppy Love
by Mina Greene
Summary: Six kids, one motivation—love. VictorxElsa, ToshiakixNassor, Weird GirlxEdgar.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One  
Victor**

Victor loved science.

He loved physics, biology, and chemistry, and would normally pay rapt attention to any lecture concerning any of those topics. But today…today was different. Today that attention was directed to none other than Elsa van Helsing, the girl who sat only a few seats away from him in class, the girl who'd lived in the house next to him for years, the girl oblivious to Victor's stares. He quietly observed her scribbling down lecture notes in her notebook.

Why did he feel so strange? The science teacher's voice softened to a low murmur, and the world around him seemed to fade. He lifted a hand to his cheek; it was warmer than usual. The corners of his mouth were lifted into the tiniest of smiles. Weird. He remembered the time when girls had been repulsive, when even getting near one was completely out of the question. Funny how things had changed.

"Mr. Frankenstein?" A sharp voice cut through his thoughts, and he looked up to see the science teacher, Mrs. Holloway, staring at him expectantly. She was much less vocal than the gym teacher—who was also the students' former science instructor—but ten times colder and more intense.

The warmth in Victor's face disappeared. "Wha…?"

Mrs. Holloway raised an eyebrow. "Would you care to answer the question for us, Victor?" Her icy blue eyes seemed to penetrate his blank mind.

"Uh…but…I…I don't…" Sweat pricked at his palms as he scrambled to come up with an answer for a question he hadn't even heard. People were giving him strange looks. Victor, the smartest student in their science class, struggling to think up the answer?

"Hmmm. Not paying attention in class, are we, now?" Mrs. Holloway shook her head. The iciness of her eyes seemed to intensify. "Anyone else? Let's see…Toshiaki?"

Toshiaki straightened in his seat. Victor noticed that the intense boy seemed slightly happier nowadays. The same went for Nassor, Toshiaki's constant companion. It was odd, considering both of their reanimated pets had died not too long ago during the Dutch Day incident. "Cardiac conduction is the rate at which the heart conducts electrical impulses," he replied confidently.

The teacher nodded in satisfaction. "Yes. Very good, Toshiaki. Now, the heart…" Mrs. Holloway's voice once again faded into a mutter.

Victor frowned. He _had _known the answer. He was very passionate about biology, especially anatomy. His disappointment, however, dissolved as he saw Elsa turn and give him a smile, her dark eyes full of sympathy. Victor found it hard not to grin back.

The last twenty minutes of class flew by in a daze for Victor and eventually came to an abrupt end. "Tomorrow we'll be having a lab," Mrs. Holloway called after the exiting students, but Victor barely heard her. A twinge of excitement at the word "lab", but that was all.

He numbly made his way to his locker and fumbled with the combination. The numbers swirled through his head, making it hard to concentrate. Three…thirty-eight…what was the last number…?

Then he heard_ her_ voice.

"Hey, Victor," she murmured as she passed by. Victor spun around and saw that she was wearing a small smile that traveled to her normally solemn eyes and made them light up.

Why was his heart pounding so hard? He managed a soft "Oh…h-hey, Elsa" and quickly attempted to look casual by nonchalantly leaning his elbow against the lockers, but his arm slipped, and he landed with a humiliating _bump_ on the linoleum floor. A few passing students stopped by to gawk or snicker.

Elsa was the only one to do something about it. "Are you okay?" she gasped, stooping to help him up.

Face burning, Victor took her proffered hand and picked himself up off the floor. He dusted his pants off with cold, damp hands. "Um, yeah, I'm fine," he replied, though he doubted it was true. He laughed. The sound was nervous and awkward, but Elsa giggled tentatively with him, to his relief. Spectators raised their eyebrows and walked off, whispering like conspirators. Neither Victor nor Elsa seemed to notice them.

Elsa paused for a moment, her eyes focused on her shoes. Then, with one last smile and a "See you later" thrown over her shoulder, she turned and made her way down the hall towards her own locker. A dazed Victor watched from where he stood as she twirled in her combination. The rectangular door swung open and concealed the thin girl from his view. He turned away, heart thudding, tiny beads of sweat popping out on his forehead. He couldn't remember a time when he had ever felt this way. What _was_ this feeling?

That's when he realized.

He had a crush on Elsa van Helsing.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two  
Weird Girl**

The small house that sat a little ways from the rest was quiet. So quiet that one would assume it was empty. But it wasn't. For inside one of its rooms, staring out a window, sat a thin blonde girl, her large eyes overflowing with tears.

Lily—known to her fellow students as Weird Girl—was miserable.

It had been weeks since Dutch Day happened, but she was still upset over Mr. Whiskers' death. Her loyal companion, her one true friend…gone. She'd retrieved the body herself from the demolished windmill. She remembered so vividly the sight of her beloved cat burned, bloody, and dead.

Oh, how she wished she could bring him back to life! But she knew the destruction and chaos the vampire cat would only bring to New Holland if he were to be reanimated. If only there was some way to change him back to the way he originally was, with his soft white fur and sweet mew. Unfortunately, she did not know of such a way.

Alas, not only was her pet gone, but her love, Edgar, still failed to notice her. Why did he, though, if she was the only one who loved him, who understood him, who truly _knew_ him? Life could be so incredibly cruel. She remembered when a few of the boys in their class had teased Edgar for his appearance: the protruding teeth, the deformed hands, the hunched back that she herself adored. She remembered the anger that had burned in her chest as she observed the ridiculing of her love. Weird Girl had been the only one to stand up for him, yet all Edgar had done while his rescuer suffered for her loyalty was timidly walk away.

The flutter she felt in her heart whenever she saw him was painfully hard to ignore. She knew that she would never feel the same way for anyone else but Edgar. _Only_ Edgar. No other person could satisfy her desire for companionship.

Sniffling, Weird Girl turned from the dusty window and slowly walked toward the door, which swung open with a soft, echoing _creak_. The rest of the house was eerily quiet and still. Her widowed mother was still at work, and Weird Girl was an only child. The silence was a constant reminder of her loneliness. How nice it would be to escape it all.

Weird Girl stepped out from the front door and was immediately embraced by the cool afternoon air. The sun hung low in the sky, illuminating the rows of streets, cookie-cutter homes, and the pet cemetery—Weird Girl's current destination. She needed someone to talk to, and it didn't matter if they were living or dead.

The graveyard was devoid of life when she arrived. The squeak of the tall black gate was the only sound present in the desolate place, aside from the whisper of the breeze. Weird Girl wrapped her arms around herself and headed inside.

It didn't take long for her to find Mr. Whiskers' grave. It was quite conspicuous, a tall, dark thing with a cross sticking out of the top and a statue of a winged Mr. Whiskers perched on the cross, his paw raised and his eyes staring straight ahead, as dull and lifeless as the actual body of the deceased cat himself.

Weird Girl tilted her head back to look up at the motionless gray form. "Hello, Mr. Whiskers," she said quietly. It didn't reply. Just stared straight ahead, at the sky, at something in the far distance. "I…I've been thinking about you. A lot." She sighed. "I wish you could come back, somehow…" Tears threatened to spill. She paused for a moment, trying to collect herself. Deep breath in, out.

"Nothing is going well for me," she continued, misery evident in her quavering voice. "_He_ never notices me, still. I don't understand. To love, but to never be loved back…but you loved me, kitty, didn't you?" Hope lit up her gaze, only to be dimmed again. "But now you're gone…oh, kitty, all I need is a sign…a sign that something good will finally happen to me…" Her head dropped, along with a small tear. She crumpled to her knees and tried to hold back a sob. "Mr.…Mr. Whiskers…oh, kitty, why did you have to die?" she murmured, but only silence greeted her words. The sob escaped; Weird Girl rested her head on the cold gray stone and let the tears stream down her face. The breeze sighed, almost as though it were mourning with her. It seemed to be the only one who pitied her in her miserable state.

After what seemed like forever, the flow of tears began to subside. Weird Girl wiped her slick cheeks and took a deep, shuddering breath. She smiled sadly at the grave, which was a gray blur behind the veil of tears. "I miss you," she said. "I miss you so much." With one last sigh, she turned and walked away from her deceased pet.

Or, at least, she would have—if the speck of white sitting below the grave hadn't caught her eye. Weird Girl blinked her eyes to clear them—and gasped.

Planted in the grass were daisies, pure white and beautifully delicate, arranged into a perfect "L".

"L" for her name—Lily.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three  
Nassor**

Nassor had a secret, once.

Secrets like this one, however, did not last very long. People noticed the subtle things—the exchanged glances, the brief, flitting smiles, the lack of space between the two boys whenever they sat down together. And one of those people happened to be Toshiaki's mom.

It was hard to tell what Mrs. Tanaka thought about her son dating another boy. Nassor would sometimes catch a glimpse of her peering out from behind the tinted window of the glossy black BMW whenever she came to pick Toshiaki up from baseball practice, but it was impossible to read the expression written on the solemn face. All Nassor was certain of was that she knew about him and Toshiaki. And that she wanted to find out more.

It was just a normal evening in the sleepy town of New Holland. Families were starting dinner, children were doing homework, and the sun was slowly sinking in the sky. The only evidence of the chaotic Dutch Day incident was a shallow pile of ashes lying on the hill where the windmill—the pride and joy of New Holland—had once stood.

It was peaceful, yes, but Nassor wasn't calmed by it. Quite the opposite, actually, though he had a good reason to be. He was standing on the porch of one of the strictest people in New Holland, waiting to be interrogated by the said person in order to determine whether or not he was worthy enough to date her son. This was definitely intense.

The door opened suddenly, and Nassor looked up to see a willowy Japanese woman standing framed in the doorway of the small, neat home. Her dark, almond-shaped eyes were sharp, like Toshiaki's.

Nassor swallowed. "Mrs. Tanaka?"

She nodded. "You are…Nassor?" Her voice was soft and cool. Nassor relaxed slightly.

"Yes."

"Come in, please." She stepped back to reveal a pristine living room that contained a lamp and two pastel-green couches seated around a polished wooden table, onto which was placed a teapot and two cups. The third cup was currently being grasped by Toshiaki, who stared intently into the steaming liquid.

"Toshiaki!" Mrs. Tanaka snapped. "What we say to our guest?"

Toshiaki looked up. "Hi, Nassor."

"Toshiaki," Nassor said.

The other boy's eyes bore into his. _Don't screw this up_, they seemed to say.

Nassor couldn't promise anything.

Acutely aware of Mrs. Tanaka's fierce gaze being directed at him, he was sure to keep a bit of space between himself and Toshiaki when he sat down…just a little. He gratefully accepted the cup of green tea Mrs. Tanaka handed him. His mouth was a bit dry, for some reason.

Mrs. Tanaka took a seat across from the two boys. The steam from her cup billowed into her face, briefly concealing her eyes from view. "So," she began in a conversational tone, "how are you, Nassor?"

"I'm fine, thank you," he replied.

"I hear you are…dating my son." Her tone switched from friendly to stern in a second.

"That…is correct," Nassor stated hesitantly. He felt Toshiaki tense up beside him.

"When you and Toshiaki start dating?"

"A few weeks ago. After the…Dutch Day. A few days after Dutch Day."

"You were friends before then?"

"Yes." Actually, their relationship hadn't been quite as simple as that, Nassor thought. They'd been more like frenemies. Generally, yes, they'd been friends, but there had the frequent argument and rivalry between them. The Dutch Day incident—well, at least, the aftermath of the Dutch Day incident—had worked to soften this relationship.

"Hm." Mrs. Tanaka took a long, thoughtful sip of tea before replying. "So…I take it you're doing well in school?"

"Yes."

"How well?"

"I get straight A's."

"A plus?"

"Yes…"

"Good. That is good." Mrs. Tanaka peered carefully into her cup, then set it down on the table with a small _clink_. She sighed. "You see, I am concerned with the influence Toshiaki receive."

Nassor blinked and set down his own cup. "You mean…the influence he is currently receiving?"

Toshiaki slumped in his seat.

Mrs. Tanaka nodded. "Indeed. He is very distracted in his work. He never concentrate, never does well."

Distracted? Toshiaki, _distracted_?

"Sorry, I don't understand. Toshiaki is an excellent student, in my opinion. He always focuses in class."

She let out a short, bitter laugh. "Is that true?"

"Yes. I would know; I'm in the same classes as he is."

"Then how you explain his poor grades?"

"Poor grades?" Nassor echoed. The worst Toshiaki had ever gotten was an A minus. Well, there had been that time when he'd gotten a B, but still... "He doesn't—"

"Toshiaki is a disgrace to his family," Mrs. Tanaka insisted. "He gets bad grades, can't focus during his violin practice, he isn't good at sports. I was surprised to see he actually find a date." Nassor's heart dropped. Was this really what Mrs. Tanaka thought of her son?

Toshiaki took a sudden interest to the tea in his cup.

"Mrs. Tanaka," Nassor said, trying to keep his voice from trembling, "I honestly don't understand why you think so lowly of your son. He tries his best in school, he is a talented violinist, and is a very good pitcher. He pitched a perfect game not too long ago." He glanced sideways at Toshiaki; the other boy's gaze was focused solely on his cup.

Nassor had said the wrong thing.

"'Perfect'?" Mrs. Tanaka snapped. "What was so perfect about it? They were still able to return the ball."

"Our team won the game," Nassor heatedly pointed out. He felt someone tugging his arm, but paid it no heed.

"That's not the point. The point is, Toshiaki did not do as well as he could have. He doesn't try hard enough. He never does."

"Why can't..." He shook his head. "Why can't you just appreciate your son's talents? I think this is why you think Toshiaki is doing poorly in school. It's because you're treating him poorly. You need to give him more support—"

"Don't tell me how I should treat my son!"

Nassor rose from his seat. "I just think that this is what is best for him."

"You think_ I_ don't know what's best for him? You think _I_ don't know how to discipline him?" Mrs. Tanaka shrilled. Nassor could have sworn he'd heard her voice crack at the last note, but her fiery gaze betrayed not even the smallest sign of sadness. "_I'm_ his mother. _I _work my hardest to try to care for him and steer him onto the right path."

"Yes, I know, I'm not trying to say you aren't." His voice came out a little louder than he'd expected.

"Don't talk back to me!"Mrs. Tanaka retorted, her dark eyes narrowed.

Struggling to bring the anger boiling in his chest down to a low simmer, Nassor took a deep, shuddering breath. "Mrs. Tanaka, please…"

"Enough! That's enough!" The once calm and collected woman leaped to her feet. Her eyes burned with rage. "You are forbidden to date my son. Leave!"

"Wait, can't we just…"

"Leave. _Now_." She thrust a quivering hand towards the door.

"I—" Nassor stopped and glanced at Toshiaki, who had not spoken a word since Nassor had come in, but the boy was unresponsive—save for the impassive gaze he was now training on Nassor.

Nassor sighed. "Very well." Trembling with silent fury, he slowly turned and headed in the direction of Mrs. Tanaka's pointing finger. He stopped only once to turn around and mumble a quick "Good night, Mrs. Tanaka, Toshiaki", for which he received no response—only cold, cruel silence. Even Toshiaki did not utter a sound.

And as Nassor stepped out the door into the cool evening air, he could feel two sharp gazes burning into his back—one full of anger, the other utterly impossible to interpret.


End file.
